Unconditional Love
by shannyfish
Summary: The Las Vegas Police Department and Crime Lab are pulled into a case that just seems like a disturbance, but turns up that the truth had been hidden for years…
1. Silence Broken

**Title:** Unconditional Love

**Author:** innocent choir girl shannyfish (From Out of the Lab)

**Summary:** The Las Vegas Police Department and Crime Lab are pulled into a case that just seems like a disturbance, but turns up that the truth had been hidden for years…

**Category: **CSI General

**Genres:** Angst, Drama, Hurt Comfort,

**Characters:** Jim Brass, Gil Grissom, Catherine Willows, Warrick Brown, Sara Sidle, Nick Stokes, Greg Sanders

**Warnings:** none

**Rating:** PG-13

**Chapter:** 1 "Silence Broken"

**Author's Notes: **This is my first CSI fic. Constructive criticism is always welcomed.

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Identical homes painted in tan and stone with matching yards and mail boxes made the Horizon Estates. It was a quiet area. Because of the rules and regulations, Horizon Estates tended to also look perfect. Cars were parked in garages instead of in the driveway or on the street and no home carried any sign of personalization.

At mid afternoon, the sun was high and Horizon Estates was silent. Most people at work, a couple moms walked their little ones around in strollers, and the streets and yards empty since the school bus had yet to deposit children back into the neighborhood after a full day of school.

Julie Wilson and Babe Abrum walked their toddlers around Horizon Estates twice before the school bus arrived. Once the bus arrived, the calm neighborhood was become mass chaos and wouldn't prove quite as relaxing of a walk. It was part of their daily routine which was accompanied by gossip. And since neither of them worked…the routine was everything. It was like breathing.

Julie was of average height and weight. Her skin tone was darkened by the Nevada sun, which just seemed to brighten her bright blue eyes and bleach blonde hair that hung around her face. Her husband, Tom, drove trucks in order to support them. Her nine month old son, Todd, was the result of one of her husband's stops at home almost a year and a half before. Although her life wasn't fabulous, she was content. After all, she only had to deal with Tom every once in a while. Her husband's presence wasn't a constant one. And she had Todd completely hooked on a set schedule. Life was good as far as she was concerned.

Babe was originally from Georgia and her southern accent was the first thing that people noticed. Unlike what her name suggested, her looks were plain, she was a bit short, and still hadn't worked off the pregnancy weight she had gained from her daughter. She had short dark brown hair, brown eyes, and darkly tanned skin. She, like Julie, was happy with her life. She had filed for divorce after her husband, Richard, had cheated on her. So, she ended up with the house, her car, a monthly check from Richard, and their daughter, Leah.

Walking was just an excuse to involve the kids in an activity together that didn't provide either mother with post-activity clean-up, plus the added bonus of gossiping about the neighbors. Most of the gossip was harmless; just about who had recently bought a new car or some fancy doo-dad…it hardly ever involved anything too serious.

But that day's walk wasn't going too normal. Todd had launched his small box of Goldfish more times than Julie could count onto the ground littering the neighborhood with the precious half crunched golden fish-shaped crackers. That was not normal for Todd, which worried Julie.

Babe assured the other woman that it was normal for toddlers to throw fits. "It's just a phase," Babe tried again. "Leah Marie here," Babe said emphasizing her daughter in the stroller with one hand as if Julie didn't know her. "She went through a phase where she wouldn't have nothing but milk. God awful phase, I couldn't get her to eat not even her baby food."

"And how long did it last?" Julie asked hoping Babe's answer would comfort her in some way.

"A month."

A month? That was not comforting. "I don't know that I could stand Todd doing that for a week let alone a month."

A sudden scream shocked both mothers, stopped them, and sent them around to the front of their strollers to check on the toddlers. Neither was so much as upset, but seemed concerned. "What the hell is that?" Babe demanded looking around expecting to spot a new neighbor that they didn't know about with an unruly child. She saw none.

The screaming was suddenly joined by a man yelling. Julie looked over at Babe, a shocked expression spread across her face. "That sounds like Terry Lemming, doesn't it?"

Babe nodded in agreement as they looked on toward his house before quickly pushing the strollers onward towards Julie's house. "That sounded like a child. Does he have any kids?"

Shaking her head, Julie responded, "Not that I've ever seen or heard. He's always nice at church."

"Who's not at church?"

"Good point."

…………………………………………

With Warrick and Catherine working on another case, Grissom had called in the rest of the night shift along for Brass' mystery. Neighbors had reported unusual screams from what sounded like a child and then the resident yelling. The neighbors had noted it odd since the man was always quiet and calm. A child had never been seen in his home. "Now," Brass started. "The report came in around three. We've been here trying to clear the immediate homes…luckily most people seem friendly with others in this neighborhood. We're trying to see into the house. The screaming and yelling hasn't been heard for some time now…" It had been several hours since the report had come in, but they were trying to side with safety rather than rushing. "We're about to go in and try to get Mr. Lemming out… I want you guys ready to go in and process once we've got him out."

Sara looked from Brass to Grissom and then Nick and Greg. This was definitely a mystery as far as they knew. They could walk into a perfectly sanitized house for all they knew or one that was painted in blood spatter. There could be a dead body…an injured and abused child…or somehow it could just be a huge misunderstanding… But it was frustrating to stand out and wait for Brass and his people to get Lemming and clear the house.


	2. Hello There

**Title:** Unconditional Love

**Author:** innocent choir girl shannyfish (From Out of the Lab)

**Summary:** The Las Vegas Police Department and Crime Lab are pulled into a case that just seems like a disturbance, but turns up that the truth had been hidden for years…

**Category: **CSI General

**Genres:** Angst, Drama, Hurt Comfort,

**Characters:** Jim Brass, Gil Grissom, Catherine Willows, Warrick Brown, Sara Sidle, Nick Stokes, Greg Sanders

**Warnings:** none

**Rating:** PG-13

**Chapter:** 2 "Hello There"

**Author's Notes: **So, I just realized that on it kills my dividers between scenes…which is just plain evil because all I use are tildas and asterisks. It shouldn't delete those… So, it probably makes it way more confusing! Hopefully this new scene break will cooperate…or else…I might have to go all crazy on shakes head

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After thirty minutes of waiting outside of the Lemming Residence, the CSIs' patience was finally rewarded when Captain Brass and his men marched out with who was obviously Terry Lemming. Terry Lemming was around six feet tall with dark features, which were currently highlighted by the splatter of crimson blood around his face.

Brass joined the CSIs, letting his men take Lemming to one of the cars and take him down to the station. "There's a child's room inside… Looks like a little girl's room. There's…different…kinds of evidence that I didn't want to disturb…" he said slowly wanting to explain everything for the CSIs. "There's clear signs that the child…we didn't see her…but I'm sure she's in there somewhere…that's she's been abused over the years… I want you guys to get documentation of that…"

"You couldn't see the child?" Grissom questioned wanting to know more before his team went in.

"The child could be dead…but I don't think there's enough blood," Brass responded. As they made their way into the house, Brass looked back at the team. He made a mental note that it was probably better that Catherine wasn't there. Because what he had seen would have made her only think as an angry mother… Sometimes having Catherine on a case that involved a child was good for the case…in this situation he thought otherwise…

"Did he say anything?" Nick asked as they entered the house and then followed Brass down a hall.

"He said he doesn't have a child," Brass answered. "I even asked if he knew her by her name."

Sara blinked, "Wait. How do you know her name?"

Grissom looked over waiting for a response as well. He hadn't expected his friend to have gotten so much information when he hadn't even found a child or entered the room. "Yes...how?"

"Psychic abilities?" Greg asked.

Brass stopped at an open doorway and pointed into it, "No. Big fluffy pink and green letters on the wall spelling out Paige," he responded. Everything was where he had left it. Nothing seemed undisturbed.

Looking around the room, Grissom took it all in. The room was painted a pale pink that only seemed to seem more of a grey because of the window being boarded up. But a corner of that wood looked like it had been pulled away from the window. A twin bed against one wall, white wood with engraved hearts in the headboard, and bedding that looked like it had never been washed. Grissom could only imagine that it once matched the rest of the room. The puffy fabric letters that spelled out the child's name were above the window was the only thing that seemed to be the original color. The white dresser against the other wall next to the small toy box had both been torn apart. There was a small potty training toilet to one side of the dresser. But the carpet was soiled everywhere…

There weren't many places that the child could hide, Grissom thought. "You sure there's a child in here?" he asked looking over at Brass. "There aren't many places a child could hide…even a small one…"

"Take pictures and then enter," Brass told them. "Maybe have Sara go in…"

"Wouldn't Catherine be a better fit?" Sara asked wondering why everyone automatically assumed she was good with children just because she was a woman. Sure, over the years, she had done well with children who had been part of cases…they had clung to her…but that didn't make her good with children. Catherine was a mother and better suited to deal with children.

Nick had pictures snapping figuring that it would keep him from being nominated into going into the room. He had to admit that if he had to vote that he'd agree with Brass. Sara would be the least scary of the five of them. Plus, the odor the room was giving off was hard enough when you were standing in the hall. He didn't know how Terry Lemming or the neighbors could ignore the smell. The man didn't even keep scented candles or anything in the house to try to cover the odor.

Greg stood there crouching down trying to see if he could locate the child anywhere in the room while Brass, Grissom, and Sara argued. He figured he'd stay out of it and hang back until he was needed. The scene in front of him was all a bit too creepy for him. Maybe it was the possibly live victim and the fact that she was seemingly so young. He wasn't sure… But it was disturbing.

"Okay," Nick spoke up.

"Why is it that I need to go in?" Sara asked again looking between Grissom and Brass wanting a better answer to her question.

Grissom shrugged, "You're not what she's been possibly fearing for who knows how long. There's no female presence in this house…"

"Her mother died of cancer three years ago," Brass spoke up. "That much I got out of Mr. Lemming…"

Sighing, she looked over at them, "Maybe you scary guys should stand away from the doorway, so maybe the little girl won't be so freaked out," she suggested before carefully stepping into the bedroom.

"Paige," Grissom said before stepping to one side of the doorway, pulling Greg and Nick along with him so that all four men were on one side of the doorway. That way, in case Sara got the girl out…they could process the room after the girl was out.

Sara nodded as she stopped and looked around taking in the room. The toy box lid was off, and she could see mostly into it. If the girl was in there she would have been able to see her. No girl. Looking around more she knew that the only place the child could be would be under the bed. That meant she had to get down on the carpet. Suddenly she was happy that she was wearing gloves. The smell was bad enough, at least whatever could now be forming on the soiled carpet. Getting down though, she flattened herself against the soiled carpet remembering to breathe through her mouth. Against the wall, she saw a curled up form. Bright eyes stared back at her. "Hi Paige," she whispered quietly.

………………………………


	3. Out of the Shadows

**Title:** Unconditional Love

**Author:** innocent choir girl shannyfish (From Out of the Lab)

**Summary:** The Las Vegas Police Department and Crime Lab are pulled into a case that just seems like a disturbance, but turns up that the truth had been hidden for years…

**Category: **CSI General

**Genres:** Angst, Drama, Hurt Comfort,

**Characters:** Jim Brass, Gil Grissom, Catherine Willows, Warrick Brown, Sara Sidle, Nick Stokes, Greg Sanders

**Warnings:** none

**Rating:** PG-13

**Chapter:** 3 "Out of the Shadows"

**Author's Notes: **none

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It took some time, but Sara was able to get the girl to reach out for her hand and Sara pulled her out from under the bed all the time assuring her that she was safe now. And it was the truth as far as Sara was concerned. There was no way in hell a social worker would put that little girl back into that house after all the pictures of the room that they'd get. When the little girl was out from under the bed, Sara could finally see that the girl's skin was quite pale, and had deep blue eyes that reminded Sara of the ocean, and long greasy hair that clung to her face and was no doubtingly knotted from who knew how long of not brushing it. The hair color Sara wasn't sure of. Blonde or maybe a light brown…they'd see after she was given a bath. "Hi Paige," Sara whispered gently and used her gloved hand to stroke Paige's face gently. When the girl pulled back from her touch, Sara examined Paige and then saw her hand…wrapped protectively in latex. Slowly, Sara removed the glove in front of Paige before putting her bare hand to the child's face again. This time, Paige didn't pull away.

How long the girl had been kept captive in that room, Sara wasn't sure, but in no way had Paige displayed an understanding of what was going on. At least not verbally. Maybe she did, maybe that was why she reached out for her and took her hand and let her pull her from the bed. Sara wasn't sure. "I'm Sara," she told the girl trying to gauge if they'd be able to remove her from the room and let Grissom, Brass, Nick, and Greg in.

"Mom," was the single word that came out of Paige's mouth before she wrapped her arms around the woman and held on for dear life.

The voice was so quiet that Sara had almost missed it. It was desperate, and still not enough to gauge how much the child knew. But Sara wasn't going to argue at the moment. Paige had already suffered enough trauma. The only thing going through Sara's mind was to get her to the hospital and checked out…followed by a long bath. Gently, she placed her arms under Paige and scooped her up before carefully standing up. "It's time to go." Looking down at the scared little girl in her arms, Sara suddenly wondered who could do something so cruel to their own child? But they'd find out. They always found out why people did what they did…and sometimes it was for the most petty and small of reasons…

Walking slowly out of the room, Sara looked over at the guys who had relocated to one side. Her face showed the anger she was feeling, but she knew at the moment that she needed to concentrate on Paige. Anger would have to wait. "I'm going to ride with her to the hospital," Sara told them. She knew that Grissom would have suggested it, but that didn't need to be done.

"I'll see you there in a while," Brass said softly.

With a nod, Sara walked down the hall and exited the Lemming Residence. The ambulance was already waiting for them, which was a good thing. She didn't want a scene with all the neighbors out and about.

"Star."

At least her vocabulary wasn't completely limited to 'Mom', Sara thought. Looking up, she smiled at the star that was above them. Just a single star. All others had been banished over the years by the lights from The Strip. It was probably a miracle that one even remained. "Yep, that's a star…" she whispered and with the assistance from the EMTs, she got into the ambulance without setting Paige down, which she could only think was for the best at the moment. Moving her gaze from the EMTs to Paige, she gave her a small smile, "Wanna let the nice EMTs check you out real quick?" she asked hoping that the girl would comply, but when her grip only tightened, Sara frowned slightly. "Guess not."

………………………………

The hospital hadn't been much easier; Paige screamed and only wanted Sara. It made her heart break, but she wanted to make sure that she was okay, too. It had been hours, but they needed to make sure Paige was okay, and Sara wasn't sure what to do. She knew that at the moment that the child had clung to her and made a bond, but Catherine was the one who had a daughter and knew how to get them to do what they needed to have done.

A small knock on the door was Grissom and Brass' only warning before the two popped open the door and peeked in. "Is it safe? Everyone decent?" Brass asked already knowing that things weren't going as planned, but was trying to lighten the mood anyways.

A small smile crept across her face, "Come in." She knew that they had probably called to check up on her and the hospital had informed them that Paige was being non-cooperative, but really, what could they expect?

With Brass and Grissom in, the door closed and they kept their distance not sure whether it was okay or not. "I did a search on the first name Paige and last name Lemming. I came up with a birth certificate issued out of Arizona for a baby girl named Paige Sarah Lemming born September twelfth in 2000 to a Carol and Terry Lemming." Brass looked at the girl, "Sound familiar, Darling?"

Paige just cuddled more into Sara, turning her head from them and burying it against Sara's chest. "Mom home," she got out after a minute of stressing each word.

'Mom?' Grissom mouthed and a confused look immediately came across his face.

Sara sighed, "Paige, Sweetheart…you need to let the doctors look at you," she tried and hoped it would work, "I'll stay here the whole time." When she could feel the little girl relax in her arms and look around a little bit, Sara looked over to Grissom and Brass. "Why don't you go get someone?"

"Stay?"

Nodding, Sara rocked Paige a bit in her arms, "I'll stay."

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	4. Damaged

**Title:** Unconditional Love

**Author:** innocent choir girl shannyfish (From Out of the Lab)

**Summary:** The Las Vegas Police Department and Crime Lab are pulled into a case that just seems like a disturbance, but turns up that the truth had been hidden for years…

**Category: **Ship Ahoy! Sara/Gil

**Genres:** Angst, Drama, Hurt Comfort, Established Relationship, Case

**Characters:** Jim Brass, Gil Grissom, Catherine Willows, Warrick Brown, Sara Sidle, Nick Stokes, Greg Sanders

**Warnings:** none

**Rating:** PG-13

**Chapter:** 4 "Damaged"

**Author's Notes: **I've decided to change this from CSI General to CSI Ship Ahoy! Sara/Grissom. Sometimes the story tells you which way to go…and this one in which I figured wouldn't be very shippy has made other plans…

…………………………………………………………

Paige's examination wasn't as easy as anyone hoped, but they managed to get through it just the same. Grissom and Brass had stayed during the whole examination, which just made Grissom more concerned about the girl's attachment to Sara. Currently he had Greg and Nick at the crime scene, but he knew that they'd have to process the whole house and for that he needed to return and he needed Sara. After the child was asleep, he looked at Sara, "We have a crime scene to process…"

"I can't just leave her," Sara said quietly as she lay next to the girl stroking her hair. "She needs to be bathed and a set of clothes that actually fit her…"

"Sara…that's not our job. The social worker—"

Sara looked over at Grissom, her eyes darkened, "She doesn't need a social worker…she needs someone who's going to take care of her…" Sara knew all too well that a social worker only put you into the system. The system wasn't a place for anyone. Foster care was never a home…you always moved. Paige would never get the love and care she needed there. "Doesn't she have other family? Grandparents? Aunts? Uncles?" Sara asked.

Brass spoke up, "We located two sets of grandparents, but they're both too old to care for a six year old child, Sara…"

"You're getting emotionally involved," Grissom told her a bit harshly. She knew better, he had told her not to get emotionally involved before. "We have to be unbiased, Sara… We look at the evidence."

Sitting up, Sara was about to go off, but quickly cooled herself as the doctor came in. She quickly reminded herself that they were there for Paige. "How is she?" Sara asked wanting to know if there was any permanent damage.

"Physically, she's got some problems," he spoke up. "She has a shoulder that's been dislocated for some time…we're going to fix that as delicately as we can… She has some sores and rashes over her body, but I believe that to the conditions you described earlier. Her body is much smaller than it should be…at least she wasn't chained to something as other children that have been isolated have been. I think that's kept her from being too small. But without the right nutrition, she is still very small." He looked around at the different people in the room before continuing, "Her mental state I can't really determine at the moment. Normally in these states, children who have been abused and isolated are most often very fearful of men… And since she attached to you, Miss Sidle, I'm thinking she's attaching to you because she can see you as her mother. But this also tells us that she's not severely mentally retarded. Time will only tell us that."

Sara frowned and stared down at Paige, she didn't think there was anything wrong with her other than the fact that she had been abused and locked into that room for who knew how long… Sending her to foster care, Sara knew, wouldn't help her…if anything, it would only make things worse. She watched as Brass dismissed the doctor and then waited…she knew Grissom would start back onto his lecture about being a good CSI meant to put your feelings aside…but she couldn't do that… And she couldn't let Paige go into the system…

"Sara—"

"I don't want to hear it," she whispered pulling Paige close. Bowing her head to look down at the sleeping girl, she wondered if Grissom would continue to push her or he'd listen… All her heart wanted to take care of the girl herself…in her time in Las Vegas over the last several years she's gone from being anti-social and a work-a-holic and butterflied into a woman who had faced her demons and softened into more of a people person… She could see herself happy with a life of working only eight hours a day and then going home to a family… She wasn't sure if that's where her life would lead, but she felt that mothering building up inside of her…

Grissom frowned and looked over at Brass. And then when the door opened and the woman Grissom suspected was the social worker let herself in. This wasn't good, he already knew that. Moving between Sara and the woman, he looked over at Brass for help, who just looked amused by the whole situation.

"Can I talk to you outside?" Jim asked the social worker and opened the door for her and waited for her to step out before following her. He pulled the door shut to give his friends some time alone while he stalled for time.

Tears were in her eyes when her face turned up towards him and it made his heart burn. He didn't want her to be so upset, but she had been so strong so far. He sat down in a chair next to the bed and just stared at her for a long couple of minutes in silence. "You smell," he said in a calm level tone.

Laughing, Sara shook her head, "Gee thanks…" She sniffled and wiped her tears, "Is that your tactic to get me away from her?" Sara had forgotten the smell, it had been so pungent before, but she had gotten used to it. "Paige needs to be scrubbed, too…"

"The social worker will make sure she's taken care of, Sara," he tried to assure gently. "Our job is to speak for the victim…to follow the evidence. The only way Terry Lemming is going to be convicted for anything more than child endangerment is if we show them exactly what she was exposed to and what she went through…"

"I've been in the system, Gil," she said letting her voice get serious and she could tell that using his first name had caught his attention. "Now, I'm not saying that taking care of her is going to be easy…but for now…I want to do it…" She made sure that she was looking directly at him so she knew just exactly how serious she was and how confident she was that she could actually do it. "You can process the scene without me… I can take some days off…or even work in the lab… I can use your office and work on paperwork…that way Paige could come with me."

He wasn't sure how that would all work out, but it really wasn't his decision. "You know I can't just tell the social worker to let you take her home…" Grissom almost wished he could. It was nice to see Sara caring so much for the child, and it made him long to see her with that side more often. He had to admit that Sara had come a long way and blossomed… Sighing, he wondered if she knew exactly how beautiful she was inside and out…and how much that had changed over the years. Gil could see in her eyes that she could do it, that she could care for Paige, and it hurt him to think that she had put it in his hands and he could fumble with that. "I'll see what I can do," he finally said.

…………………………………………..

TBC…


End file.
